The Traveller and Romany communities have a long and rich history as a nomadic people, yet they also have a long and painful history as victims of prejudice. Some of their cultural practices are incomprehensible to many, especially after those sensationalist TV documentaries. This lack of understanding has often led to a great deal of enmity from those who live near their settlements. Sometimes this friction overshadows the fact that the Travellers and Romany people, like the Jewish community, are recognised ethnic minorities with rights. Of course, these rights do not mean that they can ride roughshod over the law, but the proposed eviction at Dale Farm may have far more to do with nimbyism than with legal action.

One could be forgiven for assuming that Jews, Travellers and Gypsies have little in common; we are, after all, peoples of differing cultures and lifestyles. Although Jews and Gypsies in particular have coexisted across Europe for centuries, there are only very minor traditions, such as Jewish klezmer music, that have been influenced by our encounters. Yet it is our shared history as "others" and as victims of oppression which cannot be ignored. For an example, take the Gypsies' porajmos (from the Romany word for destruction) and our hurban (from the Hebrew word for destruction) – names for the Holocaust where Jew and Gypsy alike were forced from their homes, too often to their deaths. It is, of course, quite ludicrous to compare the Holocaust with evictions at Dale Farm, but the plight of the residents has drawn a number of rabbis prepared to champion this cause.

A primary factor is the language being bandied about, especially when some of the terminology is nothing short of racist. Our communities have experienced being labelled as an underclass, they have been the victims of "acceptable" discrimination and dehumanised by language. Yet our concern should also be directed at the misuse of inflammatory language by those opposing the eviction. To label this process as "ethnic cleansing" is to confuse a heartless situation with genocide.

Alongside the disturbing language there are increasing concerns that the residents are victims of discrimination. It is clear that half the site is a legal, privately owned, Travellers camp. The other half is also owned by Travellers but lacking planning permission. Their land is located in the greenbelt, but the site was not some unspoilt patch of countryside, it was a scrap yard.

We cannot and should not ignore the legalities; a violation of greenbelt planning policy is against the law. Jewish teaching maintains the principle that "the law of the land is the law". While it is understandable for Basildon council and local residents to feel that they must challenge illegal construction, is that the only reason Dale Farm is in their sights?

Jewish law calls on us to show empathy not enmity for others, for we too have experienced hardship and suffering. As the UN pointed out, Basildon council's actions should not proceed at the expense of fragmenting a community. This is especially true of plans that involve relocating many of the evicted Travellers, including children settled in local schools.

There are also reports that the full cost of the eviction may exceed £18m; an astronomical sum in these economically challenging days of hefty public service cuts. Yet it is not the fiscal costs that ultimately concern me, it is the refusal to look beyond the letter of the law at the suffering of others. As I am reminded by my tradition, "to execute true justice, show mercy and compassion to one another" (Zechariah 7:9).

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